It’s that time of the year again, when the James Beard Foundation announces which of the industry’s best will be given a coveted award by the organization.

Earlier this week, the foundation awards ceremony was hosted by actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.

The theme of this year’s evening was “Powered by Food,” which “celebrated the thrilling ways that technology has strengthened our connections through food, from the blog post that sparks a trend, to the Instagram that inspires us, and the shared images that become our portal to cuisine from far afield,” according to a JBF press release.

Almost 2,000 chefs, industry leaders, and former JBF award winners and nominees were in attendance.

Foodable has featured a lot of the 2017 winners in the past, so without a further ado, we are congratulating these friends of Foodable by resurfacing past episodes or articles showcasing their craft.

Outstanding Bar Program, Arnaud’s French 75 Bar in Nola

Back last summer, we visited Chris Hannah the head bartender at the 1920s French-themed bar. Hannah whipped up three cocktails, including the signature drink that the bar was named after. Check out the episode here.

Head bartender of French 75, Chris Hannah works his magic on an Across the Bar episode | Foodable Network

Vernick is no stranger to the JBF. He was a finalist for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic in both 2015 and 2016. He is also no stranger to Foodable, his restaurant, Vernick Food & Drink has landed at no. 1 on Foodable’s Top 25 Restaurants in Philly several times.

GREG VERNICK | COURTESY OF VERNICK FOOD & DRINK

Click here to learn what his most important lesson was in his first year of owning his restaurant.

Suzanne Goin Gets Inducted to the JBF’s Who’s Who of Food & Beverage

This badass chef is the culinary mastermind at her concepts A.O.C., Lucques, and Tavern. As a self-proclaimed Francophile, Goin and her partner, Caroline Styne (who snagged a nomination this year for Outstanding Restauranteur) have a small kingdom of renowned restaurants in Los Angeles, many of which have and continue to land on Foodable’s Top 25 Restaurants in LA.

Foodable Network

Foodable is the premier Network for the Restaurant and Hospitality industry. As the leading producer of Social TV, we reach hundreds of thousands of social connections that are targeted operators, foodies, chefs, suppliers, and consumers that thrive on learning more about the industry. Though quickly growing, the Foodable Network, featured on YouTube and iTunes, currently hosts seven shows: Table 42, Rock My Restaurant, Across the Bar, Food as a Lifestyle, On Foodable, Fast Casual Nation and more!

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The way it works

Our Foodable Top 25 restaurant rankings are not hand-selected or chosen by an editor. These lists are based off of unstructured data from Foodable Labs, which tracks over 171K restaurants and brands, and calculates data based on the mass social audience across multiple markets and countries. The Foodable Top 25 drills down into the local-social audience, or geo-located social actions, in each respective city or market we cover. We seek the real social impact of what people think about the experience of your restaurant at the local level.